18-year-old elected as SNP councillor in by-election

An 18-year-old has become one of the youngest elected representatives in the UK after winning a Stirling Council by-election.

The SNP’s Josh Fyvie won the contest for the Stirling East ward on Thursday, taking 36.4% of the vote – increasing the party’s share by 1.8%.

Labour came second with 23.9% of the vote – down 1.7% – followed by Reform on 23.3%, a rise of 9.2%.

The win puts the SNP on 10 councillors, just one behind the Tory-Labour administration, meaning Green councillor Alasdair Tollemache and independent Alasdair McPherson could hold the key to an SNP takeover of the council.

Speaking to The Courier, Mr Fyvie said his party intends to seek to take control of the administration.

In a statement released after his win, he said: “It is a great honour to be elected as the new SNP councillor for Stirling East and I look forward to doing everything I can to improve the lives of local people.

“I am pleased people have chosen to put their trust in me and the SNP, and I will not let them down.

“This result also clearly shows how deeply disappointed people feel by Labour for delivering nothing more than broken promises and damaging cuts.

“The SNP is now the largest party in Stirling and it is untenable for Labour to continue clinging to power alongside their Tory colleagues.”

First Minister John Swinney said: “I am absolutely delighted that Josh Fyvie has won the Stirling East by-election – he will make an excellent addition to the SNP team in Stirling Council.

“This result is a fantastic endorsement of the positive message the SNP is taking to voters across Scotland and we will continue to build on our offer of hope every day.”